Rock legend Billy Thorpe dies at 60

Australian rock legend Billy Thorpe has died after suffering a major heart attack, a spokesman for Sydney's St Vincent's Hospital said this morning.

"Mr Billy Thorpe did pass away at St Vincent's Hospital in the early hours of this morning," St Vincent's spokesman David Faktor told the Nine Network.

"I understand he passed away from a heart attack. His family were with him when he passed away."

Emergency crews attended Thorpe's home in Sydney just after midnight (AEDT) where the 60-year-old was suffering from chest pains.

It's understood Thorpe was taken by ambulance to the hospital about 2am (AEDT).

He stayed in emergency in a serious condition but went into cardiac arrest around 2.30 this morning and hospital staff weren't able to revive him.

Thorpe was born in England but migrated with his family to Brisbane in the 1950s.

He moved to Sydney in 1963 and recorded his first song the next year with his band Billy and the Aztecs.

They went on to perform at sell-out venues across Australia and had a string of hits in the 60s and 70s.

His music career has spanned five decades and he has also written two autobiographies.